Operation Leader was an air attack conducted against German shipping in the vicinity of Bodø, Norway, on 4 October 1943, during World War II. The raid was executed by aircraft flying from the United States Navy aircraft carrier , which was attached to the British Home Fleet. The American airmen located many German and Norwegian ships in this area, destroyed five and are believed to have damaged another seven. Two German aircraft searching for the Allied fleet were shot down. Three American aircraft were destroyed in combat during the operation, and another crashed while landing. The attack followed a two-year lull in Allied aircraft carrier operations against Norway and took the German occupation forces by surprise. The choice of target was guided by intelligence gained from decoding German radio signals and reports from Norwegian Secret Intelligence Service agents; two Norwegian airmen flew with the attack force to provide advice on the local geography. In addition to sinking ships, Operation Leader damaged the German war effort by considerably disrupting the convoy system in the region and reducing shipments of iron ore. Background During mid- to late-1943 the Home Fleet, the Royal Navy's main striking force stationed in the United Kingdom, was augmented by two forces of United States Navy warships to replace British ships dispatched to the Mediterranean and Pacific. These reinforcements were considered necessary to ensure that the fleet remained able to counter the German battle group based in Norway, which was built around the battleships Tirpitz and Scharnhorst, and the heavy cruiser Lützow. The initial US Navy task force arrived in May, and comprised the battleships and , the heavy cruiser and five destroyers. This force came under the command of Rear Admiral Olaf M. Hustvedt and conducted patrols into the Norwegian Sea with British warships, but did not make contact with German forces. The two battleships and the destroyers were withdrawn in August, and proceeded to the Pacific. A second task force built around the aircraft carrier replaced the two battleships in September 1943. The other elements of this force were the heavy cruisers and Tuscaloosa, as well as five destroyers; Hustvedt remained in command. Rangers air wing was made up of three squadrons: VF-4 with 27 Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters, VB-4 with 27 Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers, and VT-4 with 18 Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers. Prior to Rangers arrival the Home Fleet was assigned only